The Mechanization Technique
Verbally demonstrate HOW your product works to transform claims into conviction
Mechanization answers the prospect's inevitable question: 'How does it work?' It is the verbal demonstration that your product can actually deliver what you promise. The amount of mechanism copy needed depends on the prospect's State of Awareness -- if the mechanism is already known and accepted, simply name it; if it is new or unfamiliar, describe it in detail; if the market is saturated with identical mechanisms, build a new mechanism or a new way to explain the existing one.
Schwartz identifies three stages of mechanization: Stage One (name the mechanism -- for known products), Stage Two (describe the mechanism -- for new or unfamiliar products), and Stage Three (build a new mechanism -- for commoditized markets). The critical rule is that mechanism copy must never become dull or purely factual. Every word must sell. Mechanism copy sells a secondary claim (how it works) that proves the primary claim (what it does), but it must be loaded with promise and emotion.
The mechanism does not need to be technically accurate in scientific terms -- it needs to be believable and visualizable by the prospect. Schwartz calls it 'verbal proof' because the prospect experiences the mechanism working in their imagination before they ever buy the product.
- The prospect's dialogue with your copy will inevitably produce the demand: 'How does it work?'
- Mechanism copy is not scientific discourse -- every word must sell, loaded with promise and emotion
- The mechanism sells a secondary claim (how it works) that proves the primary claim (what it does)
- The amount of mechanism needed depends on the State of Awareness and Sophistication of the market
- A new mechanism can revitalize an exhausted market by making old promises feel fresh and believable
- Determine How Much Mechanism Your Market NeedsIf the prospect already understands and accepts how your type of product works, simply name the mechanism (Stage One). If the mechanism is new, describe it (Stage Two). If the market is commoditized and everyone has the same mechanism, you must either build a new one or explain the existing one in a completely new way (Stage Three).Pro tipCatalog and retail copy almost always uses Stage One (just name the mechanisms). Direct response and new product launches almost always require Stage Two or Three.
- Place the Mechanism at the Right Anticipation PointAfter building desire through intensification, the prospect will reach a point where promises sound 'too good to be true.' At precisely this point, shift from promise copy to mechanism copy. Too early and you bore the reader; too late and you lose their belief.Pro tipListen for when the copy starts to feel like it is making promises without backing them up. That is your anticipation point -- the exact moment to introduce the mechanism.WarningIf you delay the mechanism too long after building intense desire, skepticism crystallizes into rejection that no amount of proof can overcome.
- Write Mechanism Copy That SellsDescribe how the product works using vivid, visual language loaded with emotion and promise. Do not merely state technical facts. Show the mechanism in action, making the prospect mentally experience the product working. Use analogies, metaphors, and sensory language to make the invisible visible.Pro tipRinso did not just say 'our suds remove dirt.' They said 'Just soak the clothes in the creamy Rinso suds -- and the dirt and stains float off.' The mechanism is active, visual, and emotionally satisfying.
The classic 1926 Rinso ad spent three paragraphs building intense desire for a whiter wash with no hard work. After three paragraphs of pure promise, the reader's inevitable reaction was 'How?' Then the copy shifted to mechanism: 'Dirt floats off -- stains go. The secret is simply Rinso -- a mild, granulated soap that gives rich, lasting suds even in the hardest water. Just soak the clothes in the creamy Rinso suds -- and the dirt and stains float off.'
Schwartz identified this technique by studying the evolution of advertising from Claude Hopkins' early 'reason why' copy through the increasingly sophisticated mechanism requirements of mid-20th century markets. He observed that as markets became more sophisticated, naming the mechanism was no longer enough -- you had to build elaborate verbal demonstrations that made the prospect mentally experience the product working.